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Lankaran kulcha
Lənkəran kulçası: round Lankaran pastry filled with nuts, saffron and cardamom
AzerbaijaniLankaran, on the subtropical Caspian coast in the far south, near the Iranian border, has its own Novruz bake: kulcha, a round of soft, rich dough filled with walnuts and sugar perfumed with saffron and cardamom, pinched closed, flattened and patterned on top with tweezers before baking. Southern families make dozens for the spring festival and for visiting relatives. A common mistake is rolling the filled pastry too thin, which splits the dough. Chef's tip: crimp a pattern around the edge with a fork or pastry tweezers; it seals the kulcha and is the traditional decoration.
- Total time
- 80 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 8
Ingredients
For the dough
For the filling
- 7 oz walnutsfinely chopped
- 3 ½ oz sugar
- 1 tsp ground cardamom
- 1 pinch saffron threadssoaked in 1 tbsp hot water
- ⅔ oz buttermelted
For the top
- 1 egg yolkbeaten with saffron water
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Method
0/6 doneStep 1: Mix 16 oz plain flour, ¼ oz fast-action dried yeast, 2 tbsp sugar and ½ tsp salt. Add ¾ cup warm milk, 2 ⅞ oz butter and 1 egg and knead for 8 minutes until soft and silky. Cover and rise for 1 hour.
8 minStep 2: Mix 7 oz walnuts, 3 ½ oz sugar, 1 tsp ground cardamom, 1 pinch saffron threads and ⅔ oz butter.
Step 3: Divide dough into 8 balls. Flatten each into a 12 cm circle, put 2 tbsp filling in the middle and gather the edges to close. Turn seam down.
Step 4: Press gently into 10 cm rounds about 2 cm thick. Common mistake: rolling them thin; they split.
Step 5: Crimp the edges with a fork and mark a pattern on top. Rest for 20 minutes. Heat the oven to 375°F (fan 350°F).
20 minStep 6: Brush with 1 egg yolk and bake for 20–25 minutes, until deep golden. Cool on a rack.
25 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 410 kcal
- Protein
- 8 g
- Carbs
- 48 g
- Fat
- 21 g
- Fibre
- 2 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does lankaran kulcha take?
- About 80 minutes in total: 50 minutes to prepare and 30 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 8 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Yes. It has no meat or fish.
- What can I use instead of plain flour?
- Self-raising flour, same amount (then leave out the baking powder).
- What can I use instead of fast-action dried yeast?
- Fresh yeast, three times the weight.
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